Caucahue

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Caucahue is the name used by the Chonos, Huilliche, and Spaniards on Chiloé for a canoe‑using people who lived in the archipelagoes south of the Gulf of Penas. The term appears in 18th‑century Spanish records from Patagonia’s fjords and channels. They spoke a language different from the Chono. Archaeologist Ricardo Alvarez says they show up late in colonial records because contact with outsiders was increasing, and he thinks they disappeared by merging with the Kawésqar to the south and with the people of Chiloé to the north. Historian Ximena Urbina and colleagues say the Caucahue are basically ancient Kawésqar. Some reports describe them as “gigantic,” which may actually refer to Tehuelches.